William James (January 11, 1842 - August 19, 1910) was a developing philosopher and psychologist. He was one of the developers of the philosophy of pragmatism. William James was considered one of the four great thinkers in western literature along side of Plato, Aristotle, and Leibniz. James and these other three men all contributed major thoughts and ideas to the structure of the philosophical system.
Biography
William James was born at the Astor House in New York on January 11, 1842. He had four siblings, Henry, Alice, Wilky, and Bob. He was the son of Henry James, who was a theologian, and Mary James. James' father moved the family frequently between Europe and America during James' childhood. Education for James and his siblings was very important to their father.
James began attending Harvard Medical School in 1861 and earned his doctorate in 1869. Also he taught anatomy and physiology at Harvard from 1873 to 1876. His interests changed from anatomy and physiology to psychology in 1876. James married in late 1878 to Alice Gibbens. They had 5 children. In 1897 James had once again switched interests from psychology to philosophy. James died of heart disease August 19, 1910.
Philosophy
William James believed in pragmatism. Not only did he believe in it and support it but he also co-invented it along with Charles Peirce. He was considered one of three of the greatest pragmatists, along with John Dewey and Charles Pierce.
Pragmatism was one of the biggest American contributions to philosophy. Pragmatism is the belief that the truth of something is the sum of all of its actual results.The pragmatist slogan is " What is true is what works". For example if during the Holocaust you were hiding Jews in your attic and Nazis came to your house and you lied and said that you weren't hiding Jews a pragmatist like William James would say well it doesn't matter that you lied because you saved their life and yours in the end. Like I said, he would only care about the actual results.
Major Works
The Will to Believe- 1897, (Deciding issues with little evidence.)
Varieties of Religious Experience- 1901-1902
Pragmatism- 1907, ( If an idea will benefit you then it must be true)
The Meaning of Truth- 1909
A Pluralistic Universe-1909
Quotes
"We don't laugh because we're happy -- we're happy because we laugh."
"Is life worth living? It all depends on the liver."
"A chain is no stronger than its weakest link, and life is after all a chain."
"Footnotes -- little dogs yapping at the heels of the text"
Bibliography
Kenny, Anthony. Philosophy in the Modern World. Vol. 4. Oxford: Clarendon, 2007. Print.
Richardson, Robert D. William James. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2006. Print.
Goodman, Russell. "William James (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)." Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Web. 26 Mar. 2011. <http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/james/>.
"William James - Biography, Chronology, and Photographs." Division of Educational Studies, Emory. Web. 26 Mar. 2011. <http://des.emory.edu/mfp/jphotos.html>.
Introduction
William James (January 11, 1842 - August 19, 1910) was a developing philosopher and psychologist. He was one of the developers of the philosophy of pragmatism. William James was considered one of the four great thinkers in western literature along side of Plato, Aristotle, and Leibniz. James and these other three men all contributed major thoughts and ideas to the structure of the philosophical system.
Biography
William James was born at the Astor House in New York on January 11, 1842. He had four siblings, Henry, Alice, Wilky, and Bob. He was the son of Henry James, who was a theologian, and Mary James. James' father moved the family frequently between Europe and America during James' childhood. Education for James and his siblings was very important to their father.
James began attending Harvard Medical School in 1861 and earned his doctorate in 1869. Also he taught anatomy and physiology at Harvard from 1873 to 1876. His interests changed from anatomy and physiology to psychology in 1876. James married in late 1878 to Alice Gibbens. They had 5 children. In 1897 James had once again switched interests from psychology to philosophy. James died of heart disease August 19, 1910.
Philosophy
William James believed in pragmatism. Not only did he believe in it and support it but he also co-invented it along with Charles Peirce. He was considered one of three of the greatest pragmatists, along with John Dewey and Charles Pierce.
Pragmatism was one of the biggest American contributions to philosophy. Pragmatism is the belief that the truth of something is the sum of all of its actual results.The pragmatist slogan is " What is true is what works". For example if during the Holocaust you were hiding Jews in your attic and Nazis came to your house and you lied and said that you weren't hiding Jews a pragmatist like William James would say well it doesn't matter that you lied because you saved their life and yours in the end. Like I said, he would only care about the actual results.
Major Works
Quotes
Bibliography